My Hatred Of Inane Save/Checkpoint Systems (And Other Grumblings)

GameInformer's Jeff Akervik writes: "Ok, so let's get this straight: You're going to punish me for dying (because dying in and of itself isn't punishment enough, obviously) by making me trek all the way back to the point in which I had just lost my life only to make me sit through a sequence I've already seen and have absolutely no interest in seeing again? What year is this, 1997? This type of game design should be dead and long gone by now. And yet here we are in the year 2010. What am I missing here?"

I agree with you. I was really hyped for this game. The story, characters, and atmosphere hooked me in, but the lousy save system aggravated me. I also go stuck in the same spot, and just gave up and sold the game back.

That is half the reason I could not stop playing Demon's Souls. Yes, it is frustrating when you die and having to do a level over again but the exhilaration you feel once you beat that level is unlike any other feeling in the world. Syphon Filter and games of the like really tested my skills as a gamer. It makes you not just go in guns blazing and jumping to reach the next check point.

I think new gamers (born after 1990) simply do not understand this concept. You used to have to EARN your victory. I loved it. Now, where is my copy of Demon's Souls, anyway....

I was born in 1982, and I do understand your comment that like the old games in the past, trial and error and repeated deaths will lead to satisfaction when you finally nail that bastard. However, as a person that doesn't have a lot of time on his hands due to work, and can kill maybe an hour a day escape from reality and play a game with a good story,and engaging characters, the individual should not have to be penalized by having to re do a mission again in order to advance the story. The perfect balance was done in Red Dead Redemption where if you die three times within a respective mission, they give you the option to skip to the next checkpoint with the warning that you will not get credit for completion of this mission, unless you re-do it. This gives the player the option to enjoy the story and not be frustrated with a certain level or mission that will prevent them from finishing the game.